Purchasing for the People! Vincent Galloway

Ferens Art Gallery - 1929

Between 1929 and 1992, the creation of the collection at Ferens Art Gallery has been, with a few exceptions, the responsibility of three successive curators; the first and longest serving of these curators was Vincent Galloway. 

In 1929 the Gallery had been open for a couple of years and a new post was created - curator at the Ferens with specific responsibility for the art collection. At the time this was extremely controversial and angered a Museums Sub-Committee who did not want the Gallery to have independent status. Initially Thomas Sheppard was appointed to run the Ferens but Sheppard was responsible for other museums and this decision was over-ruled by a Property and Bridges Committee who decided the two posts should not be held by one person. Ultimately this decision to grant curatorial independence was extremely far-sighted and was to benefit the Gallery greatly. 

Sheppard's Replacement

The appointee to replace Thomas Sheppard was Vincent Galloway - a young Yorkshire portrait painter who would serve as curator from 1929-1960. His appointment was made on the advice of the Directors of the National Gallery and Aberdeen Art Gallery - it was also supported by local artists Fred Elwell who wrote a glowing reference recommending him for the post. The competition was stiff and the shortlist included Sydney Paviere, an Arthur Devis expert who was pursuing a career at Harris Museum and Art Gallery in Preston. 

Galloway was instrumental in establishing the unique identity of the collection and in shaping its future direction. At the gallery's inception, there were no works by artists of local significance, no old masters and no representation of the Hull School of marine painting of the late 18th and 19th centuries. 

Approximately 650 works were either purchased or donated during Galloway's time and approximately 90 of those works are currently on display at the moment. In Gallery 2 at the Ferens Art Gallery seven of the pieces of art currently on display were acquired by Galloway including Beukelaer's 'The Fish Market'. His decisions undoubtedly influenced how the Ferens appears today. 

Portrait Paintings

For Galloway, English painting meant portraiture and he himself had an extremely strong local reputation as a portrait painter, undertook many public commissions, including some which are now in the collection of the Guildhall. With the exception of the Arthur Devis, almost all of the 18th century portraits were acquired by Galloway. These include the Portrait of a Lady, originally attributed to Hogarth, current attribution unresolved, and, perhaps most notable of all, the portrait of George Fothergill which has only recently been identified as one of the earliest known portraits by George Stubbs. 

Interestingly the painting nearly didn't make it into the Gallery's collection. It was originally offered to the Gallery along with another picture of 'Mrs Fothergill', the sitter's great aunt, but both were rejected by Galloway, possibly because they were by an unidentified artist and simply attributed to the English School. However, in 1954 Galloway changed his mind, approached the owner and offered to buy the work. It is certainly a tribute to Galloway that he bought this portrait now identified as a Stubbs.

Marine Paintings

Galloway also oversaw the acquisition of many of the Gallery's marine paintings and those by local artists. Therefore, helping to develop a comprehensive overview of local art, often referred to as the Hull School, which complemented mainstream English painting. Many pictures of local significance were purchased for relatively modest sums from the Ferens Endowment Fund. 

It is fortunate for the Gallery that Galloway was particularly enthusiastic about the merits of John Ward of Hull, and during his time at the Gallery he acquired a significant amount of his work. Including the acquisition in 1955 of Ward's masterpiece, 'The Return of the William Lee', which he brought for £200. 

Aside from Galloway's determination to collect works representing the local Hull School he organised a number of key exhibitions including a historic marine exhibition which was part of the Festival of Britain in 1951. It was the largest and most comprehensive collection of marine art ever organised and brought together over 290 works, many of which were by local artists. To coincide with this exhibition he brought up to date a 'Directory of Hull and East Riding Marine Artists'. The exhibition and publication put John Ward and Hull Marine artists on the map of English painting. 

Brangwyn

Galloway was on friendly terms with Brangwyn and it was a friendship which resulted in a remarkable and very substantial bequest of works by Brangwyn. These included 21 etchings donated in 1931 and the oil painting of Venice, 'Santa Maria Della Salute' in 1934. In the 1930s Brangwyn was very well known, but increasingly his style was regarded as 'old fashioned' and fell out of favour - it is only recently that his reputation has been revived. Luckily, Galloway was in no doubt as to his remarkable artistic achievements and gave him much recognition and encouragement. 

Duveen Bequest

One of the key characteristics of the Ferens is that contemporary work has always been collected, reflecting how art has and continues to change. Galloway did not perhaps have much of a reputation for purchasing contemporary work, but he did nonetheless recognise the importance of reflecting contemporary work - both in terms of collecting and also exhibitions.

Many of the contemporary works in the Ferens' collection were the direct result of another friendship - this time with Lord Duveen. Duveen was a native of Hull and had a long-standing association with the Gallery.

 
In 1926 the Duveen Paintings Fund was established. It was active from 1926 until 1929 and the works purchased by the Fund were stored at the Tate Gallery. On Duveen's death they were first of all offered to the Tate who selected six, after this first refusal was then given to the Ferens. Galloway selected 11 works which were officially presented in 1949. A further three, originally selected by the Tate, were also eventually offered to the Ferens, making a total of 14. The paintings reveal Duveen's commitment to the avant-garde.

Retirement

In 1960 Galloway retired and by this time the gallery had moved on considerably, it had a comprehensive marine collection, a good collection of work by artists active in Hull from the late18th century onwards, and a substantial number of Old Master paintings of the Netherlandish and Italian schools. He also developed a collection of 20th century British artists, paving the way for his successors. 

In 1972 an exhibition of his own work was held at the Gallery, it featured many portraits of local personalities and historically famous people connected with the city.